Setting goals and managing setbacks
When it comes to planning your time, you may want to consider software or apps that can help make your life a little easier. Project management software such as Monday, Asana, or Microsoft Planner can be especially helpful for larger projects with multiple due dates, like your capstone. At a minimum, you should review and update your calendar and to-do list weekly with due dates, synchronous class sessions, instructor office hours, and other important events. I recommend adding all assignment due dates and meetings to your calendar at the start of the semester, then adding additional times for reading, completing weekly assignments, and working on larger course assignments.
“Organize, Organize, Organize. Online learning requires discipline; however, it also requires great organizational skills to maintain the various aspects of the program. I learned early in the program that if I did not acquire good organizational skills, I would not survive the program. Therefore, I started a folder on my computer for each course, and within each folder, I broke everything down by each week and saved readings and required information as it related to each course. I also implemented that strategy to save all of my work to reflect on as I progress post-graduation. Organization skills are vital to your success in this program.”
Dustin Roberson. Class of 2023.
At times, you will be working on multiple projects simultaneously, including solo and group projects. When it comes to group projects, your time management and organization skills will be even more important. When working with peers, keep in mind that they may not be located within the same time zone, and finding a time for a virtual meeting or phone call may be challenging. When you are working solo, prioritizing tasks may also prove to be difficult. To help you prioritize tasks, you should consider their due dates and also how long you will need to work on a given task. New doctoral students often underestimate the time needed to complete tasks such as locating, reading, and annotating a scholarly article or formatting a paper. To help you with planning, time management, and prioritization, you can write down your start and end times for each task you complete in a day for a couple of weeks. Then, analyze your log for a more realistic picture of the time you will need in the future. You will likely be very surprised at how long it will take you to complete certain tasks and also how much time you waste because of distractions.
